


The Watch

by lma88



Category: Doctor Who, Doctor Who (2005)
Genre: AU, Chameleon Arch, Drama, Rory as The Master, dark rory, master rory
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-02-05
Updated: 2014-07-11
Packaged: 2018-01-11 07:41:34
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 19
Words: 20,178
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/1170450
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/lma88/pseuds/lma88
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Rory keeps finding a gold pocket watch everywhere he goes and the headaches get stronger and the voices get louder.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

Something had always drawn Rory to her. It’s obvious she’d grown into a beautiful young woman so that really helped things along; attraction-wise. But there was something else. He couldn’t put his finger on it exactly. In fact sometimes it didn’t make sense since she was just plain mean to him. She’d flirt with other people right in front of him and she didn’t stop even after they were married. He did enjoy her sexual appetite of course but there was a level of respect that he never got from her. Yeah, at the end of the day she always came home to him but it didn’t feel like she respected him. 

Somewhere behind his sweet and unassuming exterior was someone who wanted respect. In some ways he almost wanted to be feared but those sort of feelings he kept to himself knowing they were a bit strange. He never felt that way before. It started around the time he married Amy and The Doctor came back into their lives again.

Ever since he started traveling with the doctor he’s started feeling stranger and stranger. He’d have these dreams that didn’t seem to belong to him. These dreams scared him but this other side of him seemed to enjoy them. He’s had dreams of slowly killing Amy and enjoying it. It didn’t make sense when he woke up. When he woke up he was Rory and he loved Amy and he would do anything for her but when he’d fall asleep he had his hands around her neck and she grew weak and cold and limp in his arms and he loved it. 

It was scary but who could he talk to about it? If he told Amy she’d freak and slap him across the face. If he told The Doctor he’d probably make a big deal out of it and scan his head for alien interference or something. Thinking about it; maybe it was something alien in his brain. His thoughts didn’t seem human. It was like someone else had added things into his head that weren’t his. 

It reminded him of a schizophrenic patient he once had. Rory had understood where he was coming from when the patient explained his symptoms but Rory didn’t have any split personalities. None that he knew about anyway. 

Rory had a way of feeling incredibly empathetic towards his patients. You’d think someone so prone to feeling the pain of others would want to stay away from a hospital filled with the sick and dying but Rory was drawn to the medical field for as long as he could remember. 

He came home from work and threw his backpack on the floor by the closet in the bedroom and laid his head down on the bed letting out a heavy sigh. A patient died today. A sweet old woman who’d been in pain for some time now. It was for the best that she finally got a chance to rest; Rory figured in an attempt to think positively. But Rory wasn’t the sort to believe in things like the fate or the afterlife. 

His headaches had been getting worse and worse. He thought maybe they just had to do with stress. Amy and Rory had been on the rocks lately. It drove him mad with anger but he held it all in as he often did. He got up to go to the medicine cabinet for an aspirin but a sound stopped him. 

It was a ticking noise and seeing as how all his clocks were digital he didn’t know where the sound was coming from. He looked through all his things to find its source was a small gold pocket watch in his backpack. It was odd because Rory doesn’t remember ever seeing it before but a voice inside him said it looked oddly familiar. “How did you get here?” Rory thought out loud looking at the watch. He reaches for it and it begins to glow as he touches it. 

“Hello?” Amy’s voice calls from downstairs. 

“Yeah?” Rory quickly closes the watch in a drawer and sits back on the bed. 

“Just got home?” Amy asks. 

“Yep” Rory looked at her and then back at the drawer where the watch was hiding. He could almost hear a voice telling him he has to open it. 

Amy went to the bathroom and Rory could hear her turning on the shower and getting in. He took a peek through the slightly opened door to look at her undress. It’d been over a month since she’d let him touch her. She’d say she wasn’t feeling well but Rory knew what it was. 

Ever since the doctor dropped them off 2 years ago she’d gotten farther and farther away from him. In some ways she blamed Rory for bringing her down. It wasn’t like she wasn’t in the mood. Rory knew she’d slept with half the models she’s worked with since her modeling career took off. He’d even had a few run ins where he’d caught her in the act. He thought about divorce but he couldn’t bring himself to do it. 

“Open it!” a disembodied voice called to him and Rory quickly turned away from the bathroom door and ran back to the drawer where the watch was hiding. 

“Shut up” he whispered to it but quickly realized no one else could hear it but him. 

Just then the all too familiar sound of the Tardis could be heard coming from the living room. Rory grabbed the watch and put it in his pocket as he ran downstairs. A wet Amy in a white cotton bathrobe soon followed. 

“Ponds!!” The Doctor ran out and kissed them both on the cheek. “Sorry. Bad time?” he looked at Amy who was creating a small puddle in the living room floor. 

“I was a little busy, yeah” she scoffs. “What makes you decide to show up now?”

“Well, I felt...” The Doctor looks at Rory curiously. “I felt you could use a vacation.” 

“And you’d be right but if you haven’t noticed I was in the middle of something and I’d like to finish before we go anywhere.” Amy turns back around and goes upstairs. “Don’t you dare run off while I’m gone!” she yells from upstairs. 

“We’ll be waiting right here” The Doctor yells back. “Right, Rory?” 

“Yeah” Rory shifts and looks at the ground with his hands firmly in his pockets. He feels the watch with his fingers and feels slightly uncomfortable with The Doctor for some reason. 


	2. Chapter 2

The Doctor had promised them a vacation and they got it. It was a winter wonderland. There was plenty of gently falling snow but it wasn’t unbearably cold either. Whatever it was; it wasn’t like Earth snow. Rory compared it to Narnia. 

After 2 days of leisurely enjoying the scenery and the wildlife; a windy snowstorm picked up and they went snowblind in the forest. Amy grabbed Rory’s hand for support and when the wind died down The Doctor was nowhere to be found. 

“Where is he? He’s gone” Amy wandered around through the trees. 

“Don’t go too far on your own, Amy.” Rory called out and saw some lights in the distance. They looked like fireflies or pixies. “Maybe we should follow them” 

“I guess so” Amy found herself holding Rory’s hand as the forest grew darker. The sun on this planet was setting. I’d been so long since she’d been close to him. She felt terrible for it but she was just so easily bored. Life with Rory was just so familiar, so average and simple. She’d missed the adventures she’d had with The Doctor. 

The pixies led them to a cave. “Should we go in?” Amy smiled excited by the mystery. It’d been so long since Rory had seen her genuinely smile. They followed the glowing lights through tunnels until they found themselves in a dead end. It was just a plain room with cave walls and some rocks to sit on. 

“Oh that’s just great.” Rory threw up his arms as he saw the opening that led back to the tunnels  suddenly disappear; sealing them in the room. “Just wonderful.” Rory sat on one of the rocks and put his hands in his coat pockets. 

“It’s fine. Maybe we can reopen it somehow.” Amy checks out the area that had once been open for a clue on how to reverse it but couldn’t figure anything out. 

Rory suddenly feels something in his coat pocket that he didn’t remember putting there. Something round and cold. 

“Open it” he heard a voice say. 

“What?” Rory asked. 

“Huh?” Amy turned around to face him. 

“Nothing.” Rory realized he was the only one who could hear this voice. He took his hand out of his pocket to find a gold fob watch had gotten in there somehow. He couldn’t remember putting it in his pocket but it seemed familiar. As he looked at it, it began to glow and a bright gold light began to pour out of it. 

“Rory?” Amy turned around to see Rory completely enveloped in a beam of light. “What is that? Rory what’s going on? Where did you get that? What’s happening?”

“Oh, for God’s sake! Do you ever shut up?!” he said angrily. The glow had left the watch and it was now in his eyes. 

Amy walked up slowly to him. The gold light in his eyes disappeared and they went back to blue like they always were. But they weren’t like they always were; not really. “Rory?...”

“I’d prefer it if you didn’t call me that anymore, thanks.” he smiled rather mischievously. 

“Who are you and what have you done with Rory?” Amy’s eyes grew angry. 

“I’m The Master” he bowed “And as for your second question; what have I done to Rory? I’ve erased him. He doesn’t exist. Never really did.” 

“I ... I don’t understand” Amy’s anger began to morph into fear. 

“Of course you don’t understand” The Master rolls his eyes in frustration. “You never understand anything, do you? You’ve always been a little slow on the uptake. If you weren’t so much fun to look at I’d have a seriously hard time tolerating you.” 

“Why you...” Amy is cut off as The Master places a finger over her lips and silences her. 

“No, ssshhh. I’m talking now. When I talk you shut up and listen. You’re so much cuter when you don’t talk.” The Master smiles “You see this?” he shows her the watch. “This is a fob watch but it’s not an ordinary watch it’s a chameleon arch. It’s genius really. I hide everything about me inside it until it’s safe for me to come out. My very essence, all my thoughts and memories were stored in here and now here I am.” 

Amy’s eyes begin to water. “But Rory’s real. I’ve known him all my life. We were kids together.” 

“Why would you think it impossible for me to disguise myself as a child? I mean, say you’re a criminal and you want to lie low for a while; you’d want to look as innocent as possible. Am I right?” The Master laughs. “And Rory was such an excellent disguise, wasn’t he. Sweet, kind, shy Rory. Your ever faithful doormat, Rory” 

“Don’t say that!” Amy held back tears with anger. “Bring him back!” she demanded. 

“I don’t think so” The Master chuckled. 

Amy grabbed the watch out of his hand. “Bring him back!” A tear escaped from her eyes as she examined the watch. She sees the inscriptions on the back, a collection of circular symbols. “This is Gallifreyan. This is The Doctor’s language. This is a time lord watch.” 

“Yeah, I’m a time lord, Amy” The Master holds up his hands. “Ta-da!” he laughs. He looks at Amy’s face completely overcome with despair and he smiles. “Come on, look on the positive side.” The Master walks up to her and strokes her cheek softly. “You’ve always wanted to know how it would have felt to get fucked by a time lord and now it turns out you’d always known.” The Master chuckles viciously. 

Enraged, Amy slaps him hard across the face and her nails leave a scratch on his lip. 

The Master’s eyes grow dark as he grabs her by her wrists and pushes her up against the wall pinning her. “That wasn’t a very wise decision, Amy.” he smiles as he watches Amy struggling to loosen her wrists from his grip in vain. “You can’t push me around like you did Rory. But who needs him, right. He was kind of boring anyway, wasn’t he?” The Master twists her wrist back until Amy cries out in pain. 

“I loved him.” Amy whispered with tears streaming down her face. 

 


	3. Chapter 3

"Did you?" The Master releases his grip on Amy's wrists and paced the room. "Did you really love him or did you just love the way he worshipped you?"

"Shut up!" Amy walked towards him angrily but stopped herself short of striking him again when she remembered the bruises that were starting to appear on her wrists.

"It's kind of nice being worshipped, isn't it?" The Master smiles. "To be able to command someone and have them do exactly what you want them to do. To control people. It's fun to control people. Isn't it, Amy?" he leans in close to look her in the eye. "Maybe we're not all that different you and I" he smiles sadistically noticing the fear in Amy's eyes.

"Obviously you don't know anything about love. I'm sure no one has ever loved you!" Amy gets up in his face nose to nose forgetting the bruises on her wrists.

"Oh boohoo no one's ever loved me." The Master makes a mock sad face "But being feared works about the same as being loved when it comes to getting what you want out of people." he chuckled.

"I'm not afraid of you" Amy whispers as she looks him in the eye.

"That's either very brave of you or very stupid of you. And you were never very intelligent so I'm going to have to assume the latter." The Master takes her wrist again and twists it.

"Stop!" Amy screams.

"I thought you weren't scared" The Master's expression is deadpan.

"You're going to break my arm" Amy is afraid to move for fear The Master will turn harder. "Let go!" she pleads tearfully.

"Ask nicely this time and don't forget to say please." The Master's tone is sarcastically polite as he twists harder.

"No, please!" Amy screams.

"No please..." The Master rolls his eyes impatiently.

"No please don't hurt me. Please let me go. Please!" Amy cries until she's set free.

"Fear works just the same." The Master smiles. "And it's more fun in my opinion."

"The Doctor will stop you!" Amy threatens but backs away from him as she does so. "The Doctor will be here soon and he'll destroy."

"Ooh, promise?" The Master rubs his hands together excitedly.

Amy is backed up against the wall in fear but her eyes are filled with rage.

The Master casually sits back down on one of the large rocks in the room. "Hey, we don't have to fight. We can just sit here and relax for a minute and I'm sure The Doctor will show up and find us a way out of here. But in the meantime since we're going to be stuck in here for who knows how long we might as well try to get along. Granted we got off on the wrong foot" he laughs. "I have a terrible temper but I'll try to keep it in check."

"You're a psychopath" Amy scoffs.

"Maybe a little bit, yeah. But every time lord needs a companion and I haven't signed any divorce papers yet so..." The Master shrugs his shoulders.

"I didn't marry you." Amy walks up closer to him but still keeps a bit of distance between them.

"If you want to get caught up on technicalities fine." The Master stands up and rolls his eyes again. "But I'm pretty much the same physically. That is, I look the same since this body is actually physically stronger now than it was when it was Rory's. And I still find you to be ... nice looking.." he points at her moving his fingers from her feet to her head. "All that looks good"

"So you insult my intelligence and tell me I'm stupid. Then you almost break my arm and threaten me within an inch of my life. And now you're trying to give me a compliment on my looks?" Amy puts a hand on her hip and raises an eyebrow inquisitively.

"I guess I'm no good at flirting." The Master sighed. "That is unless you think it's working." he smiled.

"I don't think so." Amy chuckles.

"Ok, I'll give it another go later on then" The Master stood and investigated the room for a way out while Amy sat and watched him.

She didn't know what she was supposed to do. Amy looked at him and it looked like Rory but the way he moved around the room muttering to himself as he tried to find a way out reminded her of The Doctor. But he wasn't like The Doctor, not really. The Master was pure evil. He didn't care about saving anyone or helping anyone but himself.

She had an urge to put her trust in him because he looked so much like Rory but she wasn't as stupid as The Master had said she was. She knew he was going to use that against her. He'd pretend to be nice to her until she felt comfortable with him again and then attack. He'd be sweet one minute and threatening to snap her wrists again the next.

Amy really did want Rory back and she really did love him but The Master had said something that wasn't a complete fallacy. Amy did love the way Rory had worshipped her but that didn't mean that she hadn't fallen in love with him in the process. She hated herself for having let her boredom and depression get the best of her.

With The Doctor no longer there to distract her from her problems and after finding out her body had been internally altered and sterilized after Demon's Run she figured there was no point in doing anything anymore. She wanted Rory to leave her for someone better because she wasn't good enough for him and she knew it. Whether or not Rory was real or fabricated as a decoy to hide a madman's identity; Rory will always be the most beautiful man she'd ever known.

"What exactly was your relationship with The Doctor?" Amy asked making The Master stop what he was doing to look at her. "You're both time lords and you seem to know who he is. What's the story? You talk like you're this mad brilliant criminal who almost took over the world but The Doctor's never mentioned you." Amy knew this would appeal to his obvious narcissism.

"He didn't talk about me even once, did he?" The Master scoffed. "Typical" he responded exactly as Amy had expected him to almost as if on cue.


	4. Chapter 4

“I did actually take over the world once but The Doctor and his old companion reversed the whole thing so no one even remembers that it happened.” The Master rolls his eyes. “All my hard work..”

“So...” Amy kept trying to act friendly with him. “Do all time lords have companions?” 

“I don’t really make a habit of picking up strays the way The Doctor does but sometimes it helps to have an accomplice” The Master sits beside Amy giving up his search for an exit and deciding to play along with her ‘pretending to be nice’ act. 

“An accomplice is totally different from a companion.” Amy smiles “And I’m not The Doctor’s pet” she added a little more sternly. 

“Well, you keep telling yourself that if it makes you feel any better.” The Master joked. They sat close together in silence for a few seconds until a familiar noise began whirling inside the cave and the Tardis appeared before them. 

“Ponds!!” The Doctor runs out and hugs them both. “I thought I’d lost you guys.” he planted a kiss on each of their foreheads. “Let’s go!” The Doctor takes them by the hand and they run back inside the Tardis. He spins around rapidly and looks at The Master inquisitively. “Rory, do you feel alright? Something’s different” 

“I’m fine. It’s just been a pretty tiring day.” The Master put his arm around Amy and held her wounded wrist behind her back so The Doctor wouldn’t see. 

Amy did her best to keep a straight face and not show she was in pain. “We’d like to go to our room now and rest is all.” she chuckled and bit her lip. 

“Alright then. Good night.” The Doctor turned back around and fiddled with the knobs and gears on his console but he knew something wasn’t right. 

The very second The Master closed the door to their room Amy began to scold him. “I don’t care who the hell you think you are but you’re not ever going to try to control me like that ever again, you understand me?!” Amy had him up against the wall as she wagged a finger at him with her good hand. “You may very well call yourself The Master but you’re no master of mine, you got that?!” 

The Master smiled and licked the scratch Amy had left on his lip when she’d slapped him. “I know you’re quite capable of putting up a fight. I’m sure watching you struggle against me again will be just as entertaining the next time around” 

Amy takes hold of her wounded wrist. “The Doctor already knows something’s wrong. He’ll find a way to send you back to Time Lord limbo or where ever you were hiding before in that stupid pocket watch of yours.” 

“Why didn’t you just tell The Doctor I wasn’t Rory from the moment he arrived?” The Master asked honestly wanting to know why. “I thought for sure you’d rat me out”

“I...” Amy thought for a second. “I thought maybe you’d do something.” Amy had been afraid he would hurt her or The Doctor if she’d said anything but she wasn’t about to admit she was afraid of him out loud. “Why didn’t you say who you were?” she questioned him back. 

“It just wasn’t a very good time. I mean, I’d prefer to wait for a slightly more dramatic entrance.” The Master wanted The Doctor alone and vulnerable first was more like it but he wasn’t about to tell Amy that he may or may not be planning something sinister. He was still trying to figure out what he ought to do next. 

Thoughts of killing Amy flooded his mind again. It was like a pounding in his head he couldn’t ignore. But was it worth it to kill her? Amy might still be of some use to him. And if he did kill Amy he’d love for The Doctor to be present for it. 

Amy sat on the bed and looked at The Master longingly. He looked so much like Rory it was driving her crazy but it wasn’t Rory. His eyes weren’t right. Or that is to say; his eyes were the same but something behind his eyes wasn’t right. She wanted to ask him if there was anything left of Rory. Even if it was just a sliver of something in the corner of his mind. A shiver went down her spine. 

“Cold?” The Master’s voice sounded dangerously sweet. 

Amy shrugged. “I guess”. Her eyes felt heavy. “I’m a little tired is all” 

“Then get some rest” The Master sat down beside her. 

“I don’t trust you enough to take my eyes off you” Amy’s eyes narrowed. 

“Oh, is that why you can’t take your eyes off me? And all this time I thought it was because we had something.” The Master jokes in his usual sarcastic way. “I thought I felt something between us. Did you not feel it?” 

“No, I hate you” Amy scoffed but couldn’t deny she was curious about him. He looked like Rory but he was a different man. 

After having cheated on her husband for so long she’d missed him and wanted him back but she couldn’t bring herself to face him. She was ashamed because when Rory saw her she could see the hurt in his eyes.With The Master it was like cheating but it wasn’t. Physically speaking; it was her husband’s body.  


“I promise you I won’t disturb you while you sleep” The Master stood up. “I still have some of Rory’s memories and disturbing your slumber is like waking up a demon.” he laughed and it almost sounded like Rory. “I don’t need to sleep as much as humans do so you can have the whole bed to yourself. I’ll be in the library if you need me.” The Master leaves the room. 

Amy felt worried thinking he was wandering around The Tardis planning god knows what but her eyes were just so tired. As she nodded off she thought to herself half asleep about what he’d just said; he still had Rory’s memories. It was that sliver in the corner of his mind that she’d been hoping for.


	5. Chapter 5

Amy woke up to a rocking sensation that sent her rolling off her bed. “Are you kidding me!?” she yelled angrily holding her head in her hand. “Ugh” She struggled to get on her feet as the Tardis rocked back and forth. “What’s going on!?” she yelled as she reached the door. “What did he do? What did you do?!” Amy yelled down the hall as she ran towards the console room. 

“Doctor!” Amy reached the console room but it was empty and dark. Everything went quiet and the Tardis stopped rocking. She was left in almost pitch black darkness besides a very dim blue light coming from underneath the console’s glass floor. “Please” she whispered as if begging the Tardis to wake up and give her an answer. 

“Hello, Amy” Rory’s familiar voice made her heart flutter with a tinge of hope for a fleeting moment before she remembered who he really was. 

“What are you doing? I know you did this. You’ve damaged the Tardis somehow to trap us.” Amy balled her hands into fists as The Master came out of the shadow and into the soft blue light as he walked up the stairs towards her slowly. 

“Good job, Amy. You’re so intelligent.” The Master spoke; each word dripping with disdain. 

“Where’s The Doctor? What have you done with him” Amy backs up til she runs into the console table as The Master walks up to her. 

He smiles menacingly “He’s a little tied up at the moment” The Master rests his hands on the console around her and leans in close. “I’ll let him live if you do something for me first” his lips are so close Amy can feel his breath on her neck. 

She feels The Master’s hands on her hips. “Stop” she can only let out a whisper as she tries to move his hands off her unsuccessfully. “You’re not him” Amy closes her eyes as he moves his hands under her blouse. “You’re not Rory.” a solitary tear escapes from the corner of her eye. 

“That’s never stopped you before.” The Master pins her body against the console and kisses her hard grabbing her hair as he forces his tongue in. 

Amy spit in his face once he finally pulled away from her. The Master grabbed her hard by her shoulders and pushed her to the ground. She fell on her stomach and hits her head on the floor. Everything went black and when she came to she found herself strapped down and tied up by some large tenticular plant next to The Doctor. 

“Don’t worry. These aren’t the carnivorous ones” The Doctor unsuccessfully tries to calm Amy. 

“Why do you even HAVE carnivorous tentacle monster plants in the Tardis to begin with” Amy struggles to get free.   
“No, don’t move!” The Doctor warns “The flowers are poisonous. If you disturb them they’ll shoot venomous spikes to protect themselves.” 

“You’re the one who’s going to need to protect yourself, you bloody idiot!” Amy yells “Why!? Why in the name sanity do you have these?!” 

“Well, I didn’t think this was going to happen did I? I had my suspicions but ....” The Doctor is cut off. 

“How long have you been suspicious?” Amy asked. 

“Your daughter” The Doctor explained. “She’s half time lord. I really wanted to buy that whole conception in the time vortex idea but it just never felt right” 

“But Rory was human. One heart and everything” Amy shook her head unable to accept it. “There has to be someway to get him back” 

“A way to bring Rory back?” The Doctor’s face grew cold and serious. “I’m so sorry, Amy but he’s not coming back.” 

“No, shut up. There has to be something.” Amy tried to hold back tears. “The watch he carried; it had The Master’s soul in it. What if we destroy the watch? Will it kill him?” 

“It’s not a horcrux, Amy” The Doctor explains. 

“It sure sounds like one to me!” Amy yells angrily again. “Can we reverse it? Is there a reverse button that can lock The Master back inside it and make Rory normal again?” 

“The Master’s used a fob watch before and he was a different person then.” The Doctor began “We could try to trap The Master in the watch again but who’s to say his body won’t just disappear or maybe he’ll turn into someone else completely. Someone who isn’t Rory.” 

“He already isn’t Rory!” Amy is trying hard not to cry. “We have to at least try something. Rory’s as good as dead if we don’t even try.” The tears start to fall as she continues to speak. “The Master said that he had some of Rory’s memories. If Rory’s memories still exist then maybe he can come back.” 

“I have memories of my life as a human when I used the fob watch but it doesn’t mean I’m still John Smith” The Doctor hated to keep shooting her ideas down but he had to be realistic with her this time. There was a very slim chance any of those ideas could work. 

“I don’t care.” Amy talks through her tears. “It has to work. I’m going to make it work because I need him back. I need to tell him that I’m so sorry. I have to tell him that I love him and that I’ve missed him so much!” her tears spill to the floor “I hated myself so much that I couldn’t bear to face him. I couldn’t bear to let him touch me because I wasn’t good enough. Oh my god, Rory!” her tears touched the tentacles of her plant and it burned the plant and realized her. 

“Salt water!” The Doctor explained. “It just needs saline.” 

Amy wiped the tears off her face with her hands and touched the plant holding The Doctor hostage. He wiggled free and held Amy tight in a big warm hug. 

“We’ll figure this out, Amelia.” he kisses her forehead. “We’ll get through this you and me.” 

That’s what Rory had said to her when the results came back. He’d wanted children so much and she could never give him any. They had River but they never raised her. He wanted to raise a child in the right order. 

Ever since she’d known Rory; he wanted to be a father. She thought she’d failed him when she got her results back but that wasn’t when she failed him. She failed him the minute she gave up trying. She failed him when she let herself grow too cold to care. Amy promised herself she’d never fail him again.


	6. Chapter 6

Amy and The Doctor walked down a dark corridor with nothing but a dim blue light glowing from under the floor to guide them. "Now stay close" The Doctor said walking behind Amy. "You know The Tardis likes to switch things up sometimes and with The Master trying to sabotage the ship; who knows what could..."

Amy turned around to find The Doctor had disappeared. "Are you kidding me!?" Amy yelled "Are you seriously kidding me right now!?" her voice grew even louder. "Work with me here!" she threw her hands up in resignation. "We have to work together, Tardis. I thought we were friends." Amy found herself whispering to The Tardis. "After all we've been through. You gotta give me something."

As she went around the corner she heard a laughing child and quickly turned around to look. Amy found herself staring back at herself. She was 8 years old and she was wearing red rain boots and red and white night gown. Little Amelia started running down the corridor and big Amy followed after her against her better judgement. Amy found herself in complete darkness after turning another corner and stopped moving. "It's just playing tricks with my head" she repeated out loud to herself as she closed her eyes. She could still little Amelia laughing.

When she reopened her eyes; The Tardis looked like it normally did. It was well lit with an orange glow and she could see the console room at the end of the corridor. She ran towards it hoping to find The Doctor waiting for her there.

"Oh, will you look what The Tardis dragged in" The Master sat on a small brown chair reclining with his hands resting behind his head. "Where to?" he quickly stood up and began to mess with the controls.

"Where's The Doctor this time?" Amy walked up to him steaming with anger. "I'm tired of this! You tell me what you did and set The Doctor free."

The Master ignored her completely as he typed some coordinates in.

"Don't touch that. Only The Doctor can fly this thing!" Amy scolded.

"Are you kidding me?" The Master laughed. "He doesn't know what the hell he's doing most of the time. The Tardis isn't even supposed to make that terrible noise it always makes but he always leaves the brakes on."

"That's what River said." Amy smiled but it quickly faded as she remembered her current circumstance.

"River.." The Master scoffed "My own daughter and The Doctor's got her on his side. Maybe we should find her and pay her a visit"

"I don't think so" The Doctor walked in into the console room soaking wet and picking seaweed out of his hair. "Leave River out of this."

"Where have you been?!" Amy sounded like his worried mother.

"Almost drowned in the aquarium room. Obviously." The Doctor took off his shoe to let out a small pile of sand.

"Obviously, Amy." The Master rolled his eyes sarcastically.

Amy caught a glimpse of the fob watch shimmer in The Master's pocket as he walked towards The Doctor. Her mind raced with ideas about how she could get her hands on that watch. Amy stood no more than 3 feet behind The Master as he spoke to The Doctor.

"Look, we've been doing this same old song and dance for close to a thousand years now. So wouldn't it just be easier if we worked together for a change?" The Master put his hand in his pocket and stuffed the watch down too far for Amy to see it anymore. She sighed in frustration as she looked over The Master's shoulder at The Doctor.

"Think of all the power he could have if we worked together." The Master walked up close enough to nudge The Doctor with his shoulder. "We could rule the universe, you and I."

The Doctor looked at The Master with a strange warmth in his eyes mixed with an overwhelming sadness. The Doctor was looking at someone who used to be a friend; The Master and Rory. Both of them seemed too lost to ever get back. "I've never wanted to rule the universe; I've only ever wanted to see it. You'll never understand that, will you?"

"Oh, please. Stop playing innocent, Doctor. You've been controlling and bending time and space for your own amusment for centuries." The Master looked him dead in the eye and quite literally toe to toe. "You can act high and mighty and spout your pretentious, self righteous bile til you're blue in the face if it makes you feel better about yourself but it isn't going to fool me."

The Master turns around and sees Amy standing close behind him. "He's a liar." The Master speaks to Amy as he goes back to the console. "He's the worst kind of liar because he lies to himself. Me, I'm true to myself and; whether or not you'd like to admit it; we're a lot more alike than you let on, Doctor."

"Where are you flying us to?" Amy stood bravely beside The Master as she asked him.

"Earth, The Doctor's favorite planet and the easiest to control. Isn't that right, Doctor?" The Master turned around from the console to look at him as he leaned up against the console railing. "That's why you love it so much, right? Humans look at you like you're some kind of god and you can't get enough of it, can you? That's what you're companions are for."

"I don't worship The Doctor. He's my friend, something you obviously know nothing about." Amy was speaking quite boldly.

"You lie to yourself just as much as he does." The Master walked up to Amy and looked her in the eye as he took her hand. "When I'm in charge of Earth again I could give you power if you promise to stand by my side. All I need from you is your complete submission and obedience and I'll make sure to compensate your good behavior."

"I already told you, I'm no one's pet and I don't care if you make me the queen of your twisted little kingdom; I'd rather die than be your slave." Amy dared him to try something.

"That can be arranged." The Master's face is cold and serious. His eyes are dark and any warmth that had at one time resided in that once familiar face had all but disappeared. But Amy promised herself she wasn't going to give up on Rory no matter how hopeless it seemed.


	7. Chapter 7

"Sounds like we've landed" The Master ran to the front door and opened it to find himself in front of the Pond's home. "Ah, home sweet broken home" he stepped out of the Tardis and Amy quickly followed behind him.

"Where are you going?" Amy questioned him as she stood in front of him.

"Why, are you coming with me?" The Master scoffed and nudged her out the way as he caught a taxi.

"Stop!" Amy called out and ran after the cab with The Doctor behind her. She got a hold of the door handle for a minute before it sped up too fast for her to hold on. "Great, he's loose. What if he goes to the hospital?! Everyone will think he's still Rory."

"Well, it's a start." The Doctor hailed a cab. "Come along, Pond" he took her by the hand and they got into the backseat. "Royal Leadworth Hospital. It's an emergency!" he commanded the driver.

Amy and The Doctor were right to have followed their instinct of searching the hospital. Amy ran to the front desk "Has Rory Williams come in to work today?" she asked.

A nurse walking past overheard and turned to speak with her "Yeah, he's here." She looked Amy over quite judgmentally. "You his ex wife?"

Amy's eyes flashed with anger. "Not yet" she tried to hold in her urge to scream.

"He doesn't want to see you right now" the nurse crossed her arms. "He came in here looking extremely upset. I asked him if he wanted to go home but he insisted he stay and work. That's Rory for you; he's been soldiering on day in and day out even with all his troubles and I'm not letting you come in here and start another fight with him while he's at work."

"Who said I was here to fight him?" Amy was losing her temper "Maybe it's an emergency and I need to speak with him now!"

"I'll call for him but I don't want a domestic dispute in my lobby, is that clear?" the woman at the front desk rolled her eyes. "Rory Williams to the front lobby, please"

The Doctor took her to one side "What was that? What's been going on with you and Rory? Did you get a divorce?" his eyes grew incredibly sad.

"Are we really going to do this now, Doctor?" Amy crossed her arms and avoided eye contact. "Besides, he's not even Rory anymore."

"But ... he was." The Doctor took her hands in his "And if you figure out a way to change him back to Rory; who's to say you won't start fighting again?"

"I'll change. I'll beg for his forgiveness and I'll be better." Amy felt herself fighting tears.

"What have you done that would require you to beg for forgiveness, Amelia?" The Doctor could see her losing her battle to hold back tears and he held her close in a warm hug.

"Excuse me?" The nurse was back and looking her over with that disgusted look in her face again. "He's said he isn't talking to you. He probably doesn't want to come down here and see you hugging it out with your new boyfriend. I mean, seriously. What is your problem?"

"No! What is your problem!?" Amy completely lost it. "Who the hell are you and why are you speaking for my husband?"

"I'm his friend. Everyone in this hospital loves him to bits and all the other nurses know all about you and your whoring around behind his back." The Nurse was hit with a jab to the face from Amy's fist.

"You little..." Amy pulled her hair and slammed her up against the wall.

"Whoa! Hey!" The Doctor pulled them apart "That's enough."

The lights suddenly went out and panicked voices began to murmur. A scream broke through the dark followed by another and another. When the lights came back on 4 people lay dead on the floor and in their place stood four men in black clothes.

The woman at the front desk quickly picked up the phone to call the police but a bolt of bright lightning-like energy threw the phone out of her hand.

"Sorry, I really can't have you doing that right now" The Master came down the hallway and into the lobby with a big smile on his face. "I can still do the thing" he laughed putting his palms up to show them glowing with white energy.

"What the hell is going on, Rory?" The nurse who'd picked a fight with Amy disrupted him.

"Please, shut up, Nancy." The Master threw a bolt of energy at her sending her flying across the room and hitting the wall unconscious. "She's great fun at parties but she can be such a bitch sometimes" The Master smiled. "My disciples are here! They're the ones who resurrected me last time, remember?" He watched as they kneeled before him. "There's plenty more of them upstairs." The Master pointed up to the second floor and the sound of screaming could be heard through the ceiling. "Anyone too weak to be of any use to me is being put out of their misery."

Two of the Disciples of Saxon get off their knees and run upstairs. One of them reaches for Amy and holds a knife to her throat.

"No!" The Master and The Doctor both yelled in unison.

The Master slowly walked up to Amy and delicately ran his fingers down the side of her face. "She could still be of some use to me" The Master grabbed her arm and took her away while The Doctor was held back by the 2 disciples.

The Master threw Amy into a dark and empty hospital room and closed the door behind him. "You know how often I've fantasized killing you, Amy?" he asked as he slowly walked up to her. "I've imagined slitting your throat and having The Doctor watch you scream in pain as you slowly faded away. I wanted him to see that last glimmer of life leaving your eyes as you cried and choked on your own blood." he had Amy up against the wall. "But funny thing is.." The Master laughed rather maniacally. "I finally got the chance and I didn't do it." The Master looked at her suddenly quite serious. "Why do you think that is?"

"I don't know" Amy could only whisper as a tear fell down her cheek. She wanted to believe it was Rory fighting back somehow but she was losing hope. "You win" her tears were falling uncontrollably now. "You win, Master."

The Master smiled. "On your knees" He watched as she obeyed. "Good girl"


	8. Chapter 8

The Master grabbed her by the hair and forced her head up to look at him. "I said you might still be of use to me so show me how you're useful."

Amy moved her hands slowly up his thigh and began to unbutton his trousers. She'd felt the watch still in his pocket. If she could only find a way to distract him long enough to get a hold of it somehow. She looked around and spotted a syringe and other sharp medical supplies she could fight with.

The Master loosened his grip on her hair; finally allowing her to move freely. Quickly she pushed him back and grabbed a pair of medical scissors; stabbing him in the leg as she tried to get on her feet and run.

"You fucking bitch" The Master grabbed her and kept her from getting up. He pulled the scissors out of his leg. "That was very rude of you" The Master pinned her down to the floor and held the scissors to Amy's throat. "I guess you can be just as useful dead." he lifted up his arm ready to slice Amy across the throat when he felt her hand in his pocket.

"Wait" Amy whispered. "What is this?" she held the fob watch in her hand.

"It's nothing, you idiot. Now give it back to me and I might not kill you." The Master reached for the watch but Amy moved her hand away.

"Why don't you just kill me and pry it from my cold dead fingers" Amy half smiled.

"Don't tempt me." The Masters voice is low and grumbling.

"I don't think you can kill me." Amy squeezed the watch tight in her hand.

"I can do whatever I want to you" The Master slapped her across the face making her lose her grip on the watch. It flew across the room and they both went after it. Amy got to it first and ran for the door. She dropped trays and knocked over stretchers in the hallway behind her as she ran obstructing The Master from chasing after her.

"Damnit!" The Master kicked a table out of his way as he watched Amy run up the stairs. "Shut up!" he banged on his forehead with the palm of his hand. "Shut up! Shut up!" he covered his face in his hands and screamed. "I'm going to kill her and you're going to watch." He was alone but he didn't seem to be speaking to himself.

"Doctor!?" Amy screamed as she went up to the next floor.

"Amy!?" The Doctor's voice called back.

Amy knocked open all the doors she could until she found The Doctor tied up.

"Oh, what would you do without me, Doctor" Amy untied his restraints. Just then the door was flung open by one of the hospital nurses.

"Hurry! The police are on their way. I'm trying to save as many people as I can. Let's move!" she took their hands.

"Wait, I sent The Tardis to the roof" The Doctor stopped the nurse.

"The what?" she asked confused.

"It can transport us to safety" Amy quickly explained to the nurse. "You can come with us. Right, Doctor?"

"Uh.. sure. Let's go!" The Doctor, Amy and the nurse ran down the corridor to find The Master walking towards them. His hair was a mess and there was blood dripping from where Amy had stabbed him but it didn't hinder his ability to walk very much.

"I'm going to kill you, Amy!" The Master yelled maniacally as he started running after them.

"What the hell happened to Rory?!" the nurse asked as the went up the stairs to the roof.

"That's not Rory" Amy opened the door to the roof. "There's the Tardis"

"It's a box" the nurse looked confused.

"I'll explain later" The Doctor took the nurse's hand and ran to the Tardis. He opened the door and pushed the nurse inside. When he looked back he saw Amy wasn't running and The Master had made it to the roof. "Amy, what are you doing?!" The Doctor yelled at her. "He's not Rory! He'll kill you!"

Amy took out the watch. "He could have killed me a long time ago but something kept getting in the way. Didn't it, Master?" she ran her fingers through the ridges formed by the Gallifreyan writing inscribed on the watch.

"There's nothing in my way, you stupid girl" The Master raised his palm towards her and began to create a lightning ball to throw her way until he saw her raise the watch towards him.

"What happens if I open this in front of you, Master?" Amy smiled as she clicked the latch to open it. A beam of light came from it so strong that Amy almost fell backwards and she had to close her eyes from the brightness of it. She heard The Master scream and when the light finally disappeared the watch shut closed and his body laid unmoving on the floor. "Oh my God!" Amy ran towards the body. "Rory!? Please, Rory" she laid her head on his chest in search of a heartbeat or two but heard nothing.

"It's bigger on the inside" the nurse came out from the Tardis. She saw Amy crying over the body and ran to help. "Stand back" she kneeled down to examine him. Just then a large spotlight came from the sky.

"This is the police" a voice came from the helicopter above them. "We're landing and we're taking you to safety."

Amy and the nurse picked up the body and boarded the helicopter with The Doctor. Quickly they were examined by medical personnel. "We're taking you to the nearest hospital. Don't worry, you're safe now."

They laid the body down and strapped it in a stretcher. The Doctor helped examine the body with the other medical staff while Amy and the nurse sat and strapped on their seatbelts.

"You're Rory's wife, aren't you?" The nurse smiled "I recognized you from the billboards at the shopping mall. I've heard a lot about you."


	9. Chapter 9

"And what sort of things have you heard about me exactly?" Amy asked ready for the worst.

"Oh, just... Rory talked about you a lot." The nurse bit her lip and took a breath before continuing. "He told me how you'd been struggling these last few months ever since you got the news." she took Amy's hand in hers "You know he never cared about that, right? I mean he was disappointed by the news but it never changed how much he loved you." She spoke of him in past tense.

"In fact he was more disappointed in himself. He insisted that he'd failed at making you happy. But I'm sure that's not true, is it?" the nurse smiled and looked down at her feet. "Sorry if that was too personal. I'm trying to say nice things to make you feel better. You can tell me to shut up now if you want"

"So Rory never said anything bad about me?" Amy asked; her face serious and cold but her eyes holding back tears. "He didn't tell you how many times I cheated on him in the last year?"

"Oh, well..." the nurse hesitated "It was a rumor going around but Rory didn't start it. It was another one of the nurses who said she saw you with someone else. Rory confronted her and told her to stay the hell out of his private life. There was a scuffle with all the nurses after that about whose side they were on. There was all sorts of drama. You'd think we were in one of those melodramatic medical dramas."

Amy chuckled but her eyes were still sad. "Well, it's not a rumor. It's true."

"Yeah, I know" The nurse bit her lip nervously again. "He told me. I promised him never to mention it to the others."

"Sounds like you two are good friends." Amy was trying not to sound as bitter as she felt.

They arrived at the hospital and were each taken to their own rooms for further evaluation. Amy was x-rayed but there was nothing broken or sprained.

"Looks like just cuts and bruises" The nurse smiled but turned a little serious as he leaned in. "Now it looks like you got yourself in a fight; didn't you?" His voice was sweet and friendly as he tried to approach the topic with sensitivity. "We'd really like the full story so we can further evaluate what sort of care you need."

"It was one of the crazies who took over the hospital. I never saw his face" she lied. "But I messed him up good so don't you worry about me." she added.

"Are you certain you don't want to speak to a counselor? An attack can be a traumatic experience.." He's cut off.

"I said I'm fine. I just want to know where they've taken my husband." Amy was becoming uneasy.

"The man we had airlifted with you?" the nurse waited for her to shake her head yes. "Yes, well it's hard to explain actually. He seems to have no injuries whatsoever yet he remains unresponsive. He's across the hall so he's not far. We're taking good care of him."

"What exactly does that mean, unresponsive?" Amy's voice was growing worried.

"He seems to be in a coma but there are no injuries to suggest what might have caused it. You no longer need any medical supervision yourself so if you'd like you can go to the waiting area for a moment and I'll ask the doctor if you can come see him." He kindly took her hand and lead her to the waiting room.

It was a cold and sterile white room with hard plastic chairs. A pile of magazines were stacked on a glass coffee table in the center of the room. Nervous faces darted their eyes around in anticipation as the TV in the corner let out a dull roar of pre-recorded sitcom laughter at half volume.

A little boy looked up from his magazine and gasped as his eyes met Amy's. He stood up and walked up to her; his eyes filled with amazement. "Are you a princess?" he asked.

Amy laughed "Do you think I look like a princess?" She pointed at her slightly tattered jeans and the bandage wrapped around her hand.

"Here you are as a princess" The boy held up a picture in a magazine. It was one of her modeling pictures for a perfume advert. She was covered in diamonds and not much else.

Amy leaned in and whispered "Ok, you know my secret but you mustn't tell anyone about it. I'm undercover."

"Ok" the boy whispered back and sat back down with his mother.

"Mrs. Pond?" A nurse with a clipboard called her. "This way please."

Amy was lead to a room with a hospital bed surrounded by beeping boxes and wires. The Doctor was there sitting in an armchair. He sprang to his feet when he saw her. "Amy!" he gave her a hug. "Don't worry. I'm sure he'll wake up soon. Going from two hearts back to one can take a lot out of you." The Doctor gets a little more serious as he rests his hands on Amy's shoulders. "Now, it'll be like he's starting from scratch. Remember what I said could happen? He might just have a little memory loss or he might just not be Rory anymore. He'll be a human but he might believe he's someone else."

"I'll be him" Amy knelt down by the bed and took his hand. "I know it will. He was Rory even when he wasn't, remember?" She laughed thinking about her plastic Centurion.

"That's true" The Doctor smiled.

A nurse opened the door and stuck her head in. "I'm sorry but it's getting late and visiting hours will end in a few minutes. You can come back first thing in the morning if you'd like and if there's any new developments we'll be sure to phone and let you know as soon as we can."

"Stay home with me?" Amy took The Doctor's arm in her hand as they walked down the corridor and out of the hospital.

"Of course, Amelia" The Doctor kissed her forehead and held her close.


	10. Chapter 10

He woke up gasping for breath. “Mr. Williams? Is everything alright?” A nurse ran to him and checked his temperature with the back of her hand.

He thought for a moment. “Mr. Williams. That’s my name, isn’t it?” He looked around the room as he sat up in the hospital bed. 

“What do you think your name is?” The nurse asked hiding her worry as best she could. 

“Umm... I don’t remember...wait...” It hit him. “My name’s Rory!” 

“Anything else you seem to be having trouble remembering?” The nurse pressed a button to call in a doctor. 

“I don’t know how I got here.” Rory looked around a little worried. “Where’s my wife?” he asked. 

A doctor walked into the room and the nurse gave him the update. “His memory is coming and going. It seems to be short term memory. It took him a moment but he remembered his name and his wife but not how he got here”

“Can you remember anything that happened in the hospital attack?” The doctor asked as he walked towards Rory. 

“Umm... I really have no idea what you’re talking about.” Rory’s head was banging. “I’m a nurse, aren’t I?” He smiled a little remembering “I’m a nurse at the hospital on the other side of town.” 

“That’s right.” The doctor shook his head yes. “We believe you came to work and that’s when the attack took place.” 

“I don’t remember going to work.” Rory tried to put the pieces together. “I remember coming home from work and being very tired and I had this banging in my head” He held his banging head as he said it. “I don’t know if this is it or if this is something else” 

“Is there a banging in your head still?” The doctor asked. 

“Maybe” Rory was having a hard time telling. “Did I get hit in the head or something?”

“That’s what we’re trying to figure out.” The doctor explained. “Here you are waking up after being unresponsive for hours and you seem to have lost some of your memory. But you have no injuries to your head; none that any x-ray or CAT scan could detect anyway.” 

“Should I call his wife?” The nurse jumped in “I promised her I’d let her know when he woke up.” 

Rory couldn’t grab hold of any memories for too long and it was driving him crazy. Mostly memories of Amy; memories from their childhood together. He loved her; he remembered that much for sure. But the details; he couldn’t pin them down. 

“I have to get out of here” Rory was feeling uneasy. “Where’s my wife?” 

“She’s on her way. We just called her” The nurse tried to calm him. “No, don’t... stay in bed, please” 

“I just... I can’t just sit here.” Something inside Rory made him want to push her out of the way; to watch her hit the wall and collapse. It scared him. “I’m sorry” he calmly sat back down. “I’m just a little on edge, you know. This is all a bit strange.” 

“I’m sure it is.” The nurse gave him an empathetic smile. “I’m sure you’ll be just fine with a little more rest.” 

He felt like he was having memories flash by that weren’t even his. Problem was everything in his head felt so jumbled up he couldn’t distinguish between what was truly his and what wasn’t. He suddenly remembered Amy cheating on him and it punched him in the gut. He remembered hitting her and throwing her to the ground. 

“No, I didn’t...that’s not... ” Rory said out loud. 

“Sorry?” The nurse turned around as she was halfway out the door.

“Nothing. I’m thinking out loud.” Rory smiled “Maybe that’ll help sort out whatever’s going on up here” He knocked on his head like he was knocking on the front door waiting for an answer. She nurse smiled and left the room. 

Amy grabbed the keys to their little red sports car and hit the gas as soon as she got the news. The Doctor held on to his seat; afraid to speak a word. They ran down the halls in the hospital till they reached Rory’s room. 

Rory watched her walk in but for a moment he didn’t know who he was looking at. “Amy...?” 

Amy burst into tears and ran to his bed; holding him tight in a great big hug. 

“I’m ok.” Rory ran his fingers through her hair as she cried into his shoulder. “Really, I’m fine. I just... everything’s a little fuzzy.” 

“But you’re my Rory again, right?” Amy wiped the tears from her eyes.  
“Am I?” Rory asked a little puzzled.

“He may have a little memory loss.” The Doctor whispered. 

“You don’t remember me?” Amy couldn’t help but laugh a little through the tears. “I forgot you once, remember that? You didn’t exist and then you did. You were a Roman soldier and you nearly killed me; remember.” 

“Remember when the Normans torched the whole city?” Rory asked “No, wait... You weren’t there; were you? I feel like I’ve lived so many lives that I can’t .... How do you do it, Doctor?”

The Doctor smiled sheepishly and sighed “It’s the curse us Time Lords have to bear.” 

“Us?” Rory looked puzzled. “But I’m not a Time Lord; I’m just a human.” His head started banging. “Ugh, this headache!” He rubbed his temples with his fingertips. “I do remember I had this headache right before I forgot everything.” 

Memories of hurting Amy flashed by in his mind’s eye. He suddenly remembered killing 1/10th of the world’s population. “Doctor, what’s going on” Rory’s eyes were watering. “I keep getting these nightmares and I’m not sure what’s real and what isn’t.” A tear ran down his face. 

Amy put her hand in his trying to comfort him. “What sort of nightmares?”

“Nightmares where I kill people. I have dreams where I’m a murderer and it feels normal to me. Like, I kill and feel nothing. Why do I keep having such terrible dreams.” Rory can’t control the tears streaming down his face. “Doctor, what happened to me? How did I get here? They keep saying there was an attack at the hospital but I don’t remember it.”


	11. Chapter 11

"Umm... Something happened.." Amy tried to find a way to explain. "An alien who looked like a human; a bit like The Doctor except incredibly evil. He went on a killing spree. He told me he'd taken over the world before but The Doctor reversed it in the past ... or the future. But he's gone now so everything's back to normal again. Isn't that right, Doctor?"

"Uh, yeah. So everything's good now." The Doctor smiled at Rory and then took Amy's arm and moved her close to him "Where's the fob watch?" He whispered.

"I left it at home." Amy remembered she'd placed it on her nightstand.

"If you want this to never happen again you need to get rid of it. It's lucky enough that he's Rory again." The Doctor whispered to her.

"Well, how do you suggest we destroy a magic, alien, horcrux watch exactly!?" Amy whispered back.

"Hey!" Rory yelled at them. "I'm still here, you know. Mind cluing me in on what's going on here?"

"Sorry" Amy chuckled nervously. "It's just that... you lost a bit of your memory from the incident and The Doctor was just saying that your mind is very fragile right now and talking about the details of said incident might make you feel worse."

"So, was I literally abducted by aliens and brainwashed or something? Is there a chip in my head? What's the deal?" Rory stood up and took the IV needle out of his arm. "Don't lie to me, guys. Seriously explain what happened. Will my head explode if you tell me?"

"Well, possibly yeah... actually" The Doctor fiddled with his bow tie nervously with one hand and ran his fingers through his hair with the other.

"You're serious?" Rory asked as he saw Amy shake her head yes slowly. He knew there was something they weren't telling him but he believed that they were trying to protect him by not talking so he wasn't going to press the issue anymore for now.

The hospital staff gave the ok for Rory to go home but that he ought to be supervised incase his memory loss kicks in and he gets confused or lost.

"Welcome home!" Amy beamed excitedly.

Rory smiled but quickly turned serious. "Does this mean we aren't fighting anymore?" Rory sat on the couch. "Do we still hate each other or was everything magically cleared up yesterday and I just can't remember?"

"Rory, I thought you died yesterday" Amy sat down beside him. "Even The Doctor had trouble believing you'd come back but I wasn't going to give up on you. I'm sorry I ever gave up on us."

Rory gave a half hearted smile. "This might take some time but you know I'm willing to work at it if you are."

Amy smiled and hugged him. "I'm so glad you're alive"

"Me too" Rory laughed. "It's so odd though. I mean, there have been so many countless times where by all accounts I should have died yet I didn't. As someone in the medical profession; I don't understand myself."

"Maybe it's good luck" Amy smiled. Or maybe because he's a time lord, she thought. This made her remember the watch she still had in the bedroom. "Go take a nice bath and I'll meet you in bed, ok?" She gave him a kiss.

Once she heard the shower running she ran downstairs and called The Doctor. The Tardis materialized in their living room. "You have it?" He asked popping his head out the police box door.

"Yes" Amy quickly jumped inside The Tardis. "Wait.." Amy thought as she sat in the console room. "Are we going to completely destroy it? What if destroying it kills him? Kills Rory, I mean."

"That's a possibility so I've thought of a place where we can store it here in The Tardis" The Doctor twirled and took Amy's hand. He led her to a room deep inside The Tardis. He quickly swung the big blue door open and ran inside to point to a small blue box on a gold table in the center or an otherwise empty blue room. "This thing is impossible to open." He said.

"So how do you suggest we get the watch in there?" Amy put her hands on her hips.

"See this?" The Doctor pointed to a small circle in the center of the box. "It'll only open with a ring but not just any old ring. There's only two of them in the world and guess who has one" The Doctor takes a ring off his finger. It looked like a simple gold band at first but it twinkled silver and gold and began to glow as it got closer to the box. "My precious" He laughed. "Ok, but seriously this isn't gold or silver or any sort of average metal. It's made from an alloy so powerful... it's mixed with.." He's cut off.

"I'm sorry but I haven't got the time or patience for a chemistry lesson right now" Amy spoke a little on edge.

"Right, cool, got it. Back to business!" The Doctor opened the box. It was red velvet and empty inside.

Amy put the watch in and closed it. "Good, now we can destroy the ring and no one can open it."

The Doctor was hesitant at first. "Um, yeah I guess that would be the best course of action." He twirled the ring in his fingers. "I know a great volcano we can throw it into. It's the biggest volcano in the universe."

"You were watching Lord of the Rings the other day, weren't you?" Amy rolled her eyes smiling.

"No!" The Doctor crossed his arms defiantly. "I was reading it."

Amy laughed. "Fine then let's visit this giant volcano and get this thing over with."

Rory stepped out of the shower and heard the familiar roar of The Tardis downstairs. He quickly got dressed and ran to the living room to find Amy and The Doctor covered in soot. "What the hell is this? Did you just go on a trip without me or get jobs as chimney sweeps?"

"Both!" The Doctor grinned "Mind if I use your bath?"

"Yes, actually. Look what you've done to the carpet. I don't need you walking all over my house making a mess. Use one of the baths in The Tardis." Rory rolled his eyes at the sight of the black smudges all over his white carpet. The Doctor walked back in The Tardis and Amy and Rory followed behind.

"You know I'm going to need a little cleaning up myself so if you don't mind giving me a hand." Amy smiled at Rory flirtatiously as she walked towards their room in The Tardis.

Rory followed after her without missing a beat. "Mind my asking how you got this way in the first place?" He asked as they walked into their bedroom.

"Mordor" Amy answered as she opened the door to their bathroom. Rory was still confused but Amy was undressing and asking him to join her in the shower so he figured it best to not ask anymore questions.


	12. Chapter 12

“Hey, Amy..” Rory spoke as he put on his trousers in the bedroom.

“Yeah?” Amy yelled back from the bathroom. 

“I think I’m starting to remember what happened at the hospital.” He scrubbed a dry towel on his head and mussed up his damp hair. 

“What?!” Amy stuck her head out the bathroom door. “What do you remember?” She walked out wrapped in a towel trying not to look worried. 

“It’s weird.” Rory spoke as he threw on a shirt. “I can’t tell if it’s a dream or not but I see you running down one of the corridors in my hospital and I can hear myself saying ‘You’re not going to kill her. I won’t let you.’ And then I hear someone reply, ‘I’m going to kill her and you’re going to watch’. Creepy thing about it is both of the voices sound like me but only one of them is actually me.” Rory sat on the edge of the bed. 

“The Doctor said your brain would be a little scrambled.” Amy sat beside him on the bed. 

“Yeah, must be a strange dream I’m remembering” Rory smiled but a nagging voice in his head didn’t allow him to fully believe what he was saying. Somewhere in the back of his mind he felt like he was lying to himself but the lie was easier to deal with. 

“Good.” Amy smiled back as she ran her fingers through his messy hair and began to comb it to the side. “I’m so glad you’re feeling better and I’m feeling better and everything’s going to be ok, isn’t it?” 

“Everything’s going to be fine” Rory put his arm around Amy’s shoulders and held her close. “I’ve missed you” He gave her a kiss on the forehead as she rested her head on his shoulder.

“I’ve missed you too.” Amy whispered hugging him tight. 

They fell asleep together for the first time in weeks and weeks. Rory woke up suddenly quite a number of times. He’d open his eyes and find himself staring into the violet black infinity of space floating past their bedroom window. He worried it was the quiet and familiar hum of the Tardis and the recent adventure that made it feel like old times again. 

What if this is the only way to keep Amy interested? Rory wondered to himself. Maybe they were never meant to live the simple life that Rory wanted. They were fated to wander through the stars together forever. 

After waking up a 4th time, Rory decided to get up and walk to the Tardis’ kitchen for a cup of tea and ran into The Doctor in the console room. The lights were dim as he worked below the glass floors of the console hanging from a hammock with goggles over his eyes. 

“Hi” Rory greeted him in a quiet and slightly groggy voice. 

“Trouble sleeping?” The Doctor turned around and took the goggles off his head. 

“Yeah..” Rory ran his fingers through his messy hair. “I think I’ve been slowly regaining my memories of what happened at the hospital” He hoped The Doctor would be able to shed some light on the subject. “I keep seeing Amy trapped and crying and someone standing over her but I’m seeing from the point of view of the person standing over her. Like I’m seeing something through someone else’s eyes.” Rory bit his lip worried that what he was going to say next would scare The Doctor. “Not only was it like I was seeing something through someone else’s eyes but I can hear someone speaking and saying things terrible things I would never say but they’re using my voice. It’s like I was the one hurting her... but it couldn’t have been, right?” 

“Rory...” The Doctor looked worried “It wasn’t you... I mean. Remember when you shot Amy because you couldn’t control it; because you weren’t actually you and we had to put Amy in the pandorica? It’s sort of like that. In that moment you weren’t Rory so don’t feel guilty like you had something to do with it because you didn’t.” 

“If it was my body but it wasn’t me controlling it then who was?” Rory’s eyes were a mix of fear and anger. 

“It’s better if you don’t remember.” The Doctor put his hands on Rory’s shoulders “What matters is that he’s gone and Rory’s back.” He gently patted Rory on the cheek. “Always kind, always patient and always forgiving Rory. I knew you were too good to be true. You hungry?” The Doctor quickly changed the subject. “I’ll bet a nice cup of tea will help you sleep.” He took Rory by the hand and walked him to the kitchen. 

Rory watched The Doctor darting around wildly as he grabs things in the kitchen and smiled at his brand of contained chaos. “The oncoming storm in a teacup. That’s what they call you, isn’t it?” Rory joked making The Doctor laugh as he handed him his tea. 

“Where did you get your wedding ring, Rory” The Doctor noticed the gold band on Rory’s finger. 

“You know... I can’t seem to remember.” Rory was somewhat surprised that he couldn’t. “I guess it’s like you said; someone’s tampered with my memories. I do remember when I bought Amy’s though” He smiled. 

They chatted for a bit before Rory decided to head back to his room. He reached for the doorknob but something stopped him. Something was urging him to walk down the hall and into the Tardis. It was like a physical feeling of being slowly pulled in that direction. “Stop” He whispered to himself. “What is that?” He really had to fight the feeling with all his strength. “Stop, this is crazy” He finally opened the door to his bedroom and went inside but he could still feel something inside him saying he had to go down that hall. There was something down there calling to him and it wasn’t the Tardis herself. The voice was coming from inside him. 

He got in bed and did his best to go back to sleep. Amy rolled over and put her arm around him. “I love you” Rory whispered as he kissed her forehead. He said it like he needed to say it out loud to remind himself. His mind was still feeling somewhat clouded.


	13. Chapter 13

Weeks passed and everything was back as it always had been. Rory and Amy weren't having any more troubles in their marriage and Rory's headaches had all but disappeared. It was decided that what happened at the hospital was some kind of terrorist attack by this Cult of Saxon. They were all captured and sent prison but the leader of the group was still unknown and at large.

Everyone was back to work at the hospital, including Rory. And Amy had said goodbye to modeling to work for a travel magazine as a journalist. The Doctor stopped by now and then for quick visits and random little getaways across the galaxies.

Rory had all but forgotten his nightmares and his headaches until he was abruptly woken up one night in the Tardis. He quickly sat up in his bed sweating and out of breath. He looked down to see Amy fast asleep and slowly got out of bed so as to not wake her.

He went to the bathroom and ran some cold water in the sink and wet his face a little before looking in the mirror. "Who are you and what have you done to Rory Williams?" He joked to himself as he grabbed a towel to dry his face; a face that was incredibly familiar yet somehow new.

He felt a voice inside him urging him to go into the hallway and without a second thought he found himself walking down a long corridor and ending up in front of a door he'd never seen before. His hand reached out for the doorknob without Rory noticing. He opened the door to find a box in the middle of an otherwise empty room.

"What is this?" Rory asked out loud. "How did I get here?" Rory rolled his eyes and threw his arms up in defeat. He'd been having memory lapses again and this time he was going to get some answers. He walked back to the console room in hopes of getting The Doctor to stop being so secretive about whoever or whatever tampered with his brain.

"Doctor?" Rory saw The Doctor underneath the glass floor of the console room.

"Good, Rory! I could use a pair of extra hands down here" The Doctor waved for him to come join him.

"Hold this" The Doctor handed Rory some random gadgetry.

"Doctor, I have to talk to you now" Rory tried to sound urgent but as calm as possible. "I just started sleepwalking again. I open my eyes and I'm standing somewhere with no idea as to how I got there. Just tell me what's wrong with me and stop lying to me. I can take it, whatever it is."

"I don't know if you can" The Doctor's eyes grew sad. "Where did you wake up this time?"

"A room with nothing in it but a small blue box resting on a table right in the middle of the room. Is it bigger on the inside?" Rory smiled.

"No but it's got something inside it that's bigger on the inside." The Doctor walked up to him and looked him in the eye quite seriously. "Do you have any recollection of ever owning a pocket watch?"

Images and vague memories of the pocket watch flew by in Rory's mind. He remembered how it would appear and disappear and reappear without any clue as to how he got it in the first place. "I did have a pocket watch once but I don't remember ever buying one. I just always had it."

"Like how you don't remember where you bought your wedding ring." The Doctor pointed out.

"I don't get it. Do I black out and turn into a compulsive buyer?" Rory chuckled.

"When was the last time you remember having that watch in your possession exactly?" The Doctor asked.

"At the hospital" Rory looked confused and somewhat scared by his own memory. "Amy and I were fighting over it. That was the last time I saw it. I was going to die without it. I wanted to kill her. I mean, really kill her. I wanted to really drag it out and take my time with her." Rory's eyes drew dark and a strange smile creeped up on his face. "She cried so much, Doctor. On her knees begging me to stop" He chuckled. "You should have seen it, Doctor. It was brilliant." Rory took a step back. "What just happened?"

"Am I still talking to Rory?" The Doctor leaned in with a worried expression in his eyes.

"Huh?" Rory stood looking confused. "Of course you're talking to Rory. Who did you think you were talking to? What were we talking about?"

"Ok, I guess I'm just going to have to say it. Sit down, this might be difficult to take in" The Doctor gestured at the orange chair by the console

"You're scaring me, Doctor" Rory sat down.

"Rory..." The Doctor took a deep breath. "You're not Rory"

"Then who am I?" Rory looked at The Doctor with a mixture of confusion and irritation.

"You're a Time Lord. The watch you vaguely remember is holding all your real memories. The memories of who you really are" The Doctor crossed his arms and gave Rory a sad look knowing how hard it was for him to hear.

"But, Doctor. My memories are real too. My memories as Rory are real." Rory's eyes were holding back anger and tears.

"You're right, Rory" The Doctor smiled half-heartedly. "But the fob watch is still holding in The Master and it's having a hard time keeping it all in. Bits and pieces of who you really are keep seeping in."

"No!" Rory stood up definitely. "This is who I really am!" Rory paced as his eyes began to water and his fists balled up with rage. "Where is it?! Where's the damn watch!? I know you have it!"

"What would you do with it if you knew where it was?" The Doctor looked slightly worried and unsure if he was talking to Rory or The Master.

"I'm going to destroy it. I don't care who I was in some distant past in some parallel universe. Right now I'm me and no one is taking my life away from me" Rory grabbed The Doctor by his shirt with both hands and pulled him forward. "Tell me where it is now!"


	14. Chapter 14

"What's going on?" Amy spoke up as she walked into the console room in her pajamas. Her worried eyes darted back and forth between Rory and The Doctor.

Rory let go of The Doctor and slowly turned to walk towards Amy. "It's nothing."

Amy took a step back as Rory walked towards her. Rory saw the sudden flash of fear in her eyes. "Amy, it's just me. It's just Rory" He reassured her as he reached his hands out to hold her. Her hands were trembling as he held them until she got a good look into his eyes and saw he was in fact Rory.

"Oh, you scared me, you big idiot." Amy planted a big passionate kiss on Rory's lips. "But you were just fighting weren't you? So what's going on?" She looked back at The Doctor.

"He knows everything now, Amy" The Doctor answered.

"And I'm really upset you tried to keep me in the dark" Rory added. "I'm ending this once and for all, Amy. I'm destroying this... thing inside my head for good.."

"The Master is no 'thing'. He's a Time Lord and he was my friend once before we went mad." The Doctor chimed in.

"Who's side are you on, Doctor?" Amy glared. "I wanted you to destroy it and you said we couldn't because it might kill Rory too. Are you sure there's not another way?"

"I honestly don't know" The Doctor looked at Rory with a worried look on his face.

"Nothing you say is going to change my decision." Rory walked off defiantly down the hall to the room he'd just been in before. He swung the door open to find the small blue box in the middle of the room. Rory could feel the voice tell him to use his ring. "Use for what?" Rory whispered out loud as he walked towards the box. He saw the spot to unlock the box and realized he had the key all along. He slowly took off his wedding ring and opened the box. But Amy and The Doctor quickly ran into the room behind him.

"Wait!" The Doctor yelled making Rory turn around to face them; the open box hidden behind his back. "Look, Rory I like you ... I like you a lot." The Doctor started. "But you have to understand that at the end of the day; I'm alone. Yeah, I have my friends but I'm the last of my kind and there's something about the idea that there might be someone else that helps me somehow. Even if that someone else is a complete psychopath." The Doctor sighed realizing we sounded a little nuts. "You know sometimes you say things in your head and you think they're fine. What I mean is..." The Doctor ran his fingers through his hair as he searched for words. "I'd rather have Rory and The Master together then neither of you. It's either have you both or lose you both."

"Ok, I get it." Rory's kind and understanding tone distracted them from the fact that he had his hands behind his back and inside the box. "Maybe there's something we can do." Rory closed the box and slid the watch in his back pocket before quickly putting his wedding ring back on. "I'm not sure how to open it anyway." Rory moved to show a closed blue box.

"There's only one ring in all the universe that can open it" Amy explained. "There was two but The Doctor threw away his copy of the key so there's only one left and it could be anywhere in time and space"

"Yeah, I'm sure it's no where any of us could ever find it." The Doctor bluffed knowing full well the final key was right on Rory's ring finger. "And that box is rather difficult to destroy." The Doctor added.

"So what do you think we should do, Doctor?" Amy asked "Maybe there's a way you can make Rory fully himself and make The Master fully himself separately. Like maybe if you found a different host for The Master so he can leave Rory alone. Find a way to give him his own body."

"I don't know..." The Doctor pondered as he played with his bowtie. "It's worth a try, I guess"

"So it's settled then?" Rory stepped forward "Maybe we can find ourselves something like a ganger and give The Master his own body so he can stop using mine." Rory started walking out the door.

"Technically it was The Master's body before it was yours, Rory." The Doctor clarified.

Amy and Rory both turned around with angered expressions on their faces. To think The Doctor might be siding with The Master on this was enough to make them sit in silence for the rest of the trip.

They arrive at the factory where they store the Flesh used for gangers and snuck their way in. "Ok now I really don't want to be a downer but remember how temperamental gangers can be. What if this ganger of Rory doesn't want to be The Master?" The Doctor whispered as they started setting up the link to create a ganger.

"That is a fair point" Rory thought for a minute. "Who's to say that both the ganger and I won't just be the same person?" Rory also thought the worst but kept it to himself. What if the ganger is the true Rory with no Master in his head and he is the one stuck with The Master? "What if we just end up with two Masters?" Rory thought out loud. "And I really don't want to create a sentient being whose being forced to take in The Master when he doesn't want to." Rory's empathy was kicking in again.

"So are we doing this or not?" Amy was growing impatient.

Rory sighed and took a deep breath as he stepped into the machine and strapped himself in. "Just do it quickly before we get caught" Rory closed his eyes as The Doctor and Amy created a charge that would keep both Rory and his ganger alive at the same time.


	15. Chapter 15

The two Rory's didn't have time to speak as guards had noticed them breaking in and began to fire their weapons. Quickly they ran back to The Tardis and shut the door behind them but not quickly enough for Amy. She held her left arm and winced in pain as blood dripped through her fingers. "Oh, God" She tried to hold back her tears but the pain was too much.

Both Rory's suddenly went into nurse mode. "You'll be fine. It grazed you but you'll be fine." One Rory spoke as he examined a clear entrance and exit wound. The other ran to get gauze to control the bleeding. "Ok lay down for me" Rory slowly held her head as she rested while the other got a blanket noticing she was shivering. "Doctor, she might be going into shock." Rory yelled. "We need to get to a hospital now!" The other Rory yelled as The Doctor pulled levers at his console.

"I'm so cold" Amy whispered.

"You'll be fine. A few broken bones maybe but you'll be fine. Just stay with me" The Rory sitting beside her held her hand while the other stood over them.

"The pain is worse than the actual injury. I promise, you just have to hang in there for me, ok?" The other Rory began to kneel down in front of them.

"With two sexy nurses at my side I'm sure I'll be in good hands." Amy chuckled through her pain. Both Rory's laughed but then stared at each other somewhat worried. They're both Rory. Which one of them is going to turn into The Master?

Amy's carried into the hospital and within a few hours she's walking out with a sling on her arm and a cast up to her shoulder. "Well, this really stinks." Amy rolled her eyes. "I have to wear this thing for 6 weeks."

"Goodbye modeling career." Rory joked.

"Haha" Amy mockingly laughed. "But anyway, I've decided to try and get back into writing."

"You're right handed so it shouldn't be a problem." The other Rory chimed in "First thing you gotta do is pen a believable story about how you broke your arm when any of our friends or family notice."

"A story that isn't about how you tried to clone me by sneaking into a lab and getting shot by security" Rory added.

"Is there an echo in here?" The other Rory chuckled.

"Ok, this is weird." Amy stood next to one Rory while they faced the other.

"Now what are you going to do with two of me?" The Rory standing beside her chuckled.

"Well..." Amy shot him an insinuating look.

"Oh wow, that's not fair. I gave you that look when there was two of you and I got slapped." Rory laughed.

"Sorry" Amy shrugged. "So... do you know which one of you is the real Rory?"

Both Rory's put their hands in their back pockets but the Rory that had been standing next to Amy was the only one who felt the watch. "Me" He said quickly taking his hands out of his pockets.

"How do you know for sure?" Amy questioned them.

"We just do, Amy." The other Rory replied looking somewhat defeated. "He's the original"

Amy was having a difficult time trusting either of them but they had to move forward. "So, do you think it's going to work, Doctor?" Amy asked. "I mean, if he's an avatar will the watch know the difference?"

"Never tried it before" The Doctor shrugged. "I'm honestly not sure."

"Why don't we discuss it" Rory spoke up. "The two of us" He pointed to his other self. "To figure out what would be the most fair way of doing this."

Amy and The Doctor agreed and the two Rory's went to the Tardis library to talk.

"Was it a good idea to leave them unattended?" Amy whispered as she leaned in to ask The Doctor.

"Do you not trust them?" The Doctor gave her a look. "They're both Rory and we both know what a terrible liar he is so it's going to be an honest and fair discussion. Don't you think?"

"Yeah" Amy smiled remembering how adorable he was when he used to stumble over his words when he tried to lie. "Rory used to be a terrible liar" Amy's face became despondent. "But people change, don't they?" Her big green eyes met The Doctor's. "And traveling with you has given us both a great deal of practice. Always having to come up with excuses and make believe trips to explain why we randomly disappear every couple of months." Amy paced around the console. "He's had 10 years of traveling with you to practice lying. That's not including the 2000 years he spent guarding the Pandorica. I think he's better at it then we both realize."

In the library Rory had a talk with himself. "We're most likely thinking about the same thing, right?"

"I'm thinking that I don't know what I'd do if I lost Amy again but then again if I'm The Master I won't care, will I?" The other Rory replied. "But I know I'm not the real Rory. I know I'm the ganger so..."

Rory took the watch out of his pocket and gave it to his ganger. "I'll give you a running start" The ganger Rory smiled as he waited for Rory to run out of the library to warn the others before opening the watch.

"He's doing it." Rory ran back to the console room. "The ganger's agreed to it but we gotta get ready fast because he'll be here any minute."

"Who will?" Amy was confused by Rory's nervous behaviour.

"I gave him the fob watch. I've had it for a while now." Rory looked at The Doctor. "Sorry I lied."

"I think I've been a bad influence on you, Rory" The Doctor half smiled as the three of them stood close and ready for whatever The Master had up his sleeve this time.


	16. Chapter 16

"Umm... guys?" A familiar voice came from down the hall. Rory's ganger slowly walked into the console room with his hands up. "It's just me... I figured letting The Master loose inside the Tardis might not be the best idea"

"Makes sense. Why did I not think of that?" Rory asked himself.

"Well, you kind of did, mate" Rory's ganger pointed to himself.

"I was also thinking why don't we just take Amy to The Sisters of the Infinite Schism to get that arm healed faster before we go back home." The ganger suggested.

"Yeah, let's take this damn thing off my arm." Amy was eager to go. "It's getting itchy"

Rory and The Doctor shot each other a look. Both had a difficult time trusting this other Rory but decided it'd be good for Amy to get that cast off and healed faster.

"This is archaic!" The nurse at the hospital said looking at Amy's cast. "We'll have you out of this thing in no time"

The Doctor stayed behind with Amy while the Rory's stayed in the waiting room.

"So.." Rory began. "Has the watch been giving you any trouble?" He questioned his ganger. "Has it been affecting your thoughts at all?" He wondered what his ganger was feeling since Rory himself felt no ill effects. There were no voices or strange thoughts clouding his mind anymore so maybe The Master was affecting his ganger instead.

"No, I feel fine... so far." Rory's ganger replied. "But I remember what it felt like." He chuckled a little. "Isn't it wierd? I mean, I know it's going to sound crazy but..." The ganger lowered his voice. "Don't you almost miss it? I mean, it feels so ... I don't know. Powerful. Scary, definately. But the power you feel like you can do anything and everything."

"And angry" Rory added. "It just filled me with so much rage"

"But that rage made you stronger, didn't it?" The ganger looked at Rory with a strange glint in his eyes. "Everybody has rage inside them, deep down. Even 'sweet little Rory'." Rory's ganger spoke with air quotes. "Especially after all that The Doctor and Amy put us through. The rage inside you made you stronger."

"I think that's the watch talking" Rory looked a little worried but not just because The Master might be taking hold of his ganger but because deep down he was almost agreeing with him. Rory had been swallowing so much rage and just shutting it away. He had a way of doing that. He could shut things away in his mind like opening and closing a door. But Rory was forgiving and that's something The Master couldn't be.

"I think kindness is stronger than rage." Rory spoke aloud softly in reply to his ganger but also as a form of self affirmation.

"Yeah, I guess it takes a lot more strength to play the good guy." Rory's ganger smiled back.

Amy was released in just a few hours with a weak but working arm. "Yes, finally!" Amy moved her arms excitedly. "I'm free!" Amy looked at her 2 husbands and suddenly grew serious as she remembered her current predicament. "So... where to next?"

"I know a good deserted location where we can drop The Master off where he'll be exiled and unable to hurt anyone. It's an ice planet so bring your coat" The Doctor spoke as they walked back to the Tardis.

In the Tardis, Rory's ganger rummaged through the racks in the wardrobe room looking for a winter coat. "So this is your brilliant plan? You're going to turn The Master into a human popsicle?"

"I can't kill him but I can't keep him anywhere near anyone. He can't be trusted." The Doctor spoke as he slowly walked towards him. "You have the chameleon arch?" The ganger simply nodded his head yes. "Hand it over" The Doctor extended his hand.

Rory's ganger began to hand him the watch but quickly pushed him up against the wall instead. "Why can't you just kill me, Doctor? Is it because you get lonely at night? Your little human companions don't satisfy you?"

The Doctor pushed The Master off him. "Welcome back." The Doctor straightened his bowtie as he spoke.

"I really don't want to go into exile on some frozen wasteland. I promise I'll be good" The Master pouted sarcastically.

"You're in a duplicate body. I don't even know if you can regenerate." The Doctor warned him. "Don't do anything stupid."

"Afraid I'll go and die on you again?" The Master smiled. "You held me in your arms and cried as you watched me die. You've always been sure a brilliant man but you've become so ... human."

"You say that like it's shameful." The Doctor looked angry.

"It is. It's disgusting." The Master looked The Doctor up and down with a sickening look on his face. "That's why you want me around. Even if you hate me you know you'll never be one of them. You're like me, Doctor. Stop pretending you're not."

"You're right. I'll never be like them but I will NEVER be like you." The Doctor took him by the arm and walked him to the console room. "We're about to land. Everyone ready?"

Amy and Rory shook their heads yes as the put on their coats. The Tardis doors opened into a snowy darkness. The Master walked out slowly and waved. "You know I'm going to find a way out of here, right?"

"I wouldn't be surprised." The Doctor smiled.

"Admit it, Doctor. You love me. You can't live without me." The Master yelled as he began to walk away. The wind was picking up.

"If I never see your face again it'll be too soon!" The Doctor yelled back.

"Look behind you." The Master pointed at Rory making Rory smirk a little.

They watched him walk into the darkness and then closed the door behind them.

"Do you think he's bluffing, Doctor? About saying that he was going to find a way out?" Amy asked as she took off her coat and hung it over the rail around the console.

"He's got quite a knack for surviving. He's a lot like me in that sense." The Doctor didn't look up from the console as he spoke. "That might explain why you've been so hard to kill, Rory."

Rory walked up behind Amy and put his arm around her shoulder. "After everything we've survived, that doesn't fill me with a lot of confidence in this plan, Doctor."


	17. Chapter 17

The Doctor began to pull levers and flick switches on the Tardis' console but after a terrible mechanical screech and a loud thump the Tardis wouldn't budge. They were stuck in a frozen desert with a malfunctioning ship.

"He's sabotaged the ship again, hasn't he?" Rory rolled his eyes.

"Can we kill him now?!" Amy was furious.

The Doctor quickly ran to the underside of the console to find a jumble of broken wires. "He's completely ruined the dematerialize functions and it looks like the zig zag plotter's gone kaput."

"Does he make this stuff up?" Rory whispered in Amy's ear as he nudged her playfully making her chuckle.

"Anything we can do to help, Doctor?" Amy called to him as she leaned over the console railing.

"It's all very complicated stuff. No offense but you'll just get in the way. I can fix this myself. It'll take a couple of days but.." The Doctor was cut off.

"A couple of days?!" Amy and Rory exclaimed in unison.

"Yeah, so make yourselves comfortable." The Doctor put on his goggles and took out a torch.

"Well, you heard the man. Might as well get comfortable." Rory signaled for Amy to follow him to their bedroom. "Doctor's orders."

"Right behind you" Amy ran after him.

Hours later Amy woke up in their bedroom to find Rory had gotten up and left her in bed. "Rory?" She called out but got no answer. She shrugged and figured he must have gone to the console room to try and lend The Doctor a hand in the Tardis' repairs. She was just starting to roll out of bed when she saw him walk in. "There you are" Amy smiled; her voice sleepy and sweet.

"Did you miss me?" He chuckled. "I just went to see if The Doctor needed any help fixing things but of course he thinks he can do it all himself so... Here I am." He sat down beside her.

"You're always so helpful, Rory. I know there's something here that needs fixing if you'd like to help me." Amy was feeling flirty as she peeked under her blanket.

"Oh, is that right?" He nudged her shoulder playfully.

"Yup" Amy kissed him and pulled him down on the bed on top of her. He let her have her way with him until she got her fix. Then Amy rested her head on his shoulder quite satisfied with herself.

"Thanks" He said with a smile in the typical way Rory always reacted to one of Amy's impromptu love making sessions. He could never tell when they were coming but he was more than grateful when they did. Especially after they started coming so few and far between.

Amy fell asleep in his arms and when she woke up she was alone again. This time she dressed quickly and made her way to the console room to find Rory and The Doctor having a heated discussion about what they ought to do with the Tardis.

Amy leaned up against the console as she crossed her arms. "Have you finally decided to accept some help, Doctor?"

"Well, after a talk with Rory I figured two heads were better than one but now I think I might go back to my original statement and suggest you stay out of my way." The Doctor lit a blow torch as he put his goggles back on.

Rory threw his hands up having had enough of The Doctor's rude behaviour. "Sometimes I think I love him and sometimes I think I want to kill him." Rory rolled his eyes as he walked up to his wife and kissed her.

"Yeah, I guess that's how love works sometimes." Amy laughed. Rory said he was going back to the bedroom while Amy decided to head for the kitchen. She stuck her head in the fridge to look for a snack when she heard a familiar voice.

"Hand me an apple while you're in there." He came up behind Amy.

"Oh, Rory I thought you said you were going back to bed." Amy hadn't expected to see him.

"Well, I got hungry." He shrugged. "Really hungry actually." He grabbed the whole bowl of apples and started eating one.

A sudden jolt almost made him lose grip on his apple. "Sounds like The Doctor might have fixed it." They heard a quiet hum coming from the console room.

"Haha!" The Doctor came in running. "Fixed! But weird.. because I could have sworn it was.. but then I turn my back and when I look again... it's fixed."

"Does the Tardis self-heal?" Amy spoke as she ate a Jammie Dodger. "I mean if it can read thoughts you'd think it'd be able to fix itself." She said with her mouth half full.

"Well sort of but... I mean... sure.." The Doctor was still feeling a bit confused. "Hand me one, will you?" He caught a biscuit in his hand and spun around excitedly. "Ok! Now to get you guys back home!"

Amy looked back to see the bowl that had once been filled with apples was now completely empty. "Did you just eat 7 apples in under 2 minutes!" Her eyes widened.

"I told you I was hungry." He chuckled.

Amy shot him a strange look and started walking back to her bedroom. She knelt down and reached under her bed to take out a box filled with an assortment of nail polishes. She jumped up when she heard someone open the bathroom door. "How'd you get in here so fast?" Amy looked puzzled.

"Huh?" Rory looked equally confused. He was in a grey t-shirt and in his pants. "I was going to go to sleep but it sounds like The Doctor has everything working again so I guess we'll be home sooner than expected."

"Yup" Amy still looked a little concerned by how quickly Rory had appeared not only on the other side of The Tardis but dressed differently than he had been in the kitchen. She walked over to the writing desk in the bedroom and started doing her nails a bright robin's egg blue.


	18. Chapter 18

Amy kept an eye on Rory for the rest of the trip without making it seem like she was suspicious of him. She felt like Rory was somehow everywhere at once and that could mean one of two things; The Tardis was playing tricks on her or The Master was playing tricks on her. Whatever the case, Amy wasn't about to let herself get played for a fool.

They made it back home and Amy gave Rory the eye as he walked out of The Tardis and up to their front door. "What?" Rory shrugged.

The Doctor took out his sonic and scanned Rory up and down. "He's good." The Doctor said as he put the sonic back in his pocket.

"What's this all about?" Rory rolled his eyes.

"Well, he just had to be sure." Amy took Rory's hand in hers and kissed his cheek.

"Sorry, Rory. It isn't like I don't trust you." The Doctor put a hand on Rory's shoulder. "It's him I don't trust." The three went inside and enjoyed a talk over celebratory drinks for having survived another wild misadventure.

Things seemed to be back to normal for the next few weeks. The hospital was back in working order and Amy had taken a break from modeling to focus on her writing. Amy was surprised by how much she'd missed home. She'd done so much running away all her whole life. It was a strange but comforting feeling to think that she had finally found a place to settle down.

She was on her laptop writing in the kitchen with a cup of tea when she heard the front door open and close. "Rory?" She yelled from the kitchen.

"Yeah" The familiar voice yelled back.

"Home early?" Amy yelled.

"Yeah" He came into the kitchen and dropped his bag on the countertop. "That's not a problem is it?" He smiled as he went into the cabinet to grab a mug.

"No, it's no problem at all." Amy smiled and closed her laptop. "How was work?"

"Uneventful. You?" He asked as he poured himself a cup of tea.

"Same" Amy sighed. "Are we boring now? It that what we've become now, boring people?" Amy stood up and put her arms around his shoulders.

"Sorry I'm not interesting enough for you." He smiled.

"Now, don't you start, Rory." Amy kissed him. She would have kept going if her phone hadn't started going off in her pocket. "Ugh, let's see who this is." Amy took out her phone and saw the caller ID was Rory's. "Hello?" She answered as calmly as possible.

"Amy?" Rory's voice was on the other line.

"Um, Hi, Laura. So how's married life treating you?" Amy walked quickly to the living room.

"Amy, what's going on?" Rory asked over the phone sounding worried.

"Oh, yeah. Rory's right here. He came home early from work." Amy explained nonchalantly since she knew he was listening in the other room.

"Are you hurt?" Rory was quickly grabbing his things and getting in the car as he spoke.

"Oh, no. I'm fine. Just been writing. Taking it easy. Having a cup of tea, whatever." Amy looked back into the kitchen to see him slowly sipping his tea and smiling.

"I'm on my way and I'm calling The Doctor. Whoever you're talking to is NOT me, ok?" Rory started driving home. "Love you"

"You too" Amy smiled as she hung up her mobile. "Laura" Amy said as she sat down across from The Master.

"How's Alice?" He asked.

"Good. Oh, to be newlyweds" Amy rolled her eyes.

He chuckled into his mug the way Rory did. He was an excellent actor but so was Amy.

"We're still ok, right?" Amy smiled. "I'll be 11 years next June! I mean, we're still fun, right?"

"Oh yeah. Loads of fun" He laughed like Rory.

"What do you want for dinner?" Amy asked as she got up and walked to the refrigerator.

"Oh, whatever." He answered noticing Amy had left her phone on the table and snuck a peak. He saw Rory was the last call she'd received and he smiled quietly.

"I guess we could order Chinese." Amy spoke with her back still turned to him as she grabbed the menu hanging on the refrigerator door. She felt his hand touch the small of her back and she quickly turned around trying to hide her sudden fright. She smiled. "Let me call them" Amy tried to get around him as he stood in the way of her being able to walk to the other side of the kitchen.

"Yeah, you left your phone on the table right next to me didn't you? That wasn't very smart" The Master smiled as he pinned Amy up against the refridgerator. Amy tried to fight back but she couldn't break her arms free from his grasp. He chuckled. "Watching you wriggle beneath me always gives me so much joy. Like this warm fuzzy feeling inside"

Amy stepped on his foot giving her a second to run but she didn't get far. The Master reached her in the living room and slammed her up against the wall. She cried out in pain as he held her against the wall by her throat. "He's going to be here soon, isn't he?" The Master smiled as he used his free hand to touch her thigh and work his way up her skirt. "Better make this quick then"

"Stop!" Amy tried her best attempt at a scream with her throat in his grasp.

"Oh, it's not like we haven't done this before, Amy." The Master smiled. "I mean you were the one who was putting the moves on me in The Tardis on our way back to Earth, remember?"

"You little..." Amy was held back "Ugh!" Amy wriggled but had to stop. The more she moved the tighter his grip around her throat got. She was getting faint. She felt his hand moving up her leg under her skirt and she closed her eyes. A tear escaped her eye at the realization that he'd been convincing enough on the Tardis to fool her. She felt sick to her stomach.


	19. Chapter 19

"Come on, pick up!" Rory knew how terrible The Doctor was at answering his phone.

"Rory!" The Doctor's voice yelled excitedly on the other line.

"Doctor, we have an emergency. He's back" Rory had his car parked outside the house. "I'd run in there myself but I think I might need some backup." Just as Rory said that The Tardis materialized across the street. Rory ran up to meet him.

"Ok, I have a plan." The Doctor spun his sonic screwdriver in the air as he explained the situation.

The Master and Amy heard The Tardis materialize. "You're in trouble now." Amy smiled.

The Master rolled his eyes as he loosened his grip on Amy's neck.

Rory ran into the house to see Amy looking pale as she struggled to catch her breath. He could see the strangulation marks on her neck. "Lay a finger on my wife again and I will not hesitate to kill you."

"I've laid a lot more than my fingers. Haven't I, darling?" The Master smiled as he watch Amy fight back tears.

"I'm sorry" Amy whispered as a tear escaped.

"You're fucking sick" Rory's eyes were filled with rage as he took out the sonic screwdriver from his pocket and aimed it at The Master.

"Yes, I am" The Master laughed. "Now I know you won't hesitate to kill me but can you really? How do you know this is going to work, because The Doctor said it would? Has The Doctor ever lied to you before, Rory?"

Rory said nothing but stood firmly in place as he pointed the screwdriver.

"I bet he said you could deactivate me but did he mention that there's a possibility you could end up deactivating yourself as well?" The Master took a step towards Rory.

"Yes, he told me that might happen. I don't care." Rory wouldn't budge.

"Ugh, why am I not surprised?" The Master scoffed. "You just have to play the hero to feel any sense of self-worth. The lengths you'll go to prove you're good enough for her. It's pathetic. You've stood beside her and put up with everything she's done while you secretly hold your self-sacrificing behaviour over her head so she feels compelled to stay with you; even if it's simply out of pity for you. Ever heard of a martyr complex?"

"Shut up!" Rory's jaw tightened. "I know you're trying to break me down and you know exactly how because you've been inside my head. You've seen my thoughts but I've seen yours too. And I'm not going to let you win." Rory flicked the switch on the sonic screwdriver.

Suddenly The Master's body began to melt and a bright light came flying towards Rory but it was diverted when The Doctor appeared with a chameleon arc in hand. The Master was trapped once again and this time he had no physical body to return to.

"Is that it?" Rory looked at The Doctor worried that it had all been too easy.

"Yeah, he's safe and sound in this little watch" The Doctor twirled the watch and put it in his pocket.

"Can't he still come back again?" Amy walked up to her husband and held his hand.

"Hypothetically yes but he'll have to choose a different body as his host. So Rory's safe, you're safe and The Master is never going to bother either of you again." The Doctor started walking towards the door to his Tardis. He wanted to ask them to join him but he was sure they wanted to rest and be with each other alone for a while. "I'll just pop out and leave you to..." The Doctor is cut off.

"You get back here right now." Rory smiled as The Doctor ran back into a group hug. Deep down they all sort of knew it was ending. The time would come when they wouldn't want or need to travel with The Doctor. It wasn't because they didn't love each other but even the wild and rebellious Amy Pond was finding her place in the real world. She wasn't running away from it anymore.

The Master wasn't manipulating Rory's thoughts from within anymore but the things he'd said rang true and they scared him a little. The Master was malicious and he loved to manipulate people with his wit and with his strength. And although Rory wasn't the sort to ask out of malice, he did hold his heroic behaviour over Amy's head.

"Basic fact of our relationship is that I love you more than you love me." Rory cut Amy down with his words. "2,000 years I waited for you." Even when faced with impending death by deranged Dalek he found the time to guilt trip her. He really did believe it was the only way to even the odds and he was so surprised to find that she'd pushed him away not because he wasn't good enough but because she thought he was too good.

"You've always wanted children and I can't have them. I didn't kick you out. I gave you up." Amy was in tears and it was so painful for Rory to watch. "Don't you dare talk to me about standing outside a box, Rory. Because that is nothing compared to giving you up!"

"Amy I.. I don't.." Rory had no words. He tried so hard to be good enough for her that he'd forced Amy to believe she wasn't good enough for him. There was a time he did believe he was better but that was The Master talking. Yet, Rory wasn't as polar an opposite to him as he'd once thought.

What might have pushed some apart actually brought them closer. They confronted each other's darker sides and revealed to each other the ugly parts of themselves that they tried so hard to hide away. But even so they came out the other end side by side and discovered they're so much stronger together than they ever could be apart. That's called marriage.


End file.
